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WotC dropped part of the veil regarding 4e. Few of the things mentioned were two classes: the Sage, and the Magician.

While the idea of a sage was not very controversial as a move, since two of the main core classes suit the role of the Sage perfectly (the bard and the rogue, with the proper selection of feats and skills), the Magician has not been implemented in any setting other than Birthright until now&#33;

I realised just now that I reread my post that I overreacted; while the whole idea has been announced, they gave no specifics as to how the Magician is implemented.

I quote:

Originally posted by "http://www.adnddownloads.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=915@ from a Los Angeles Times clipping."HASBRO TO RELEASE FOURTH EDITION OF POPULAR D&D GAME IN FALL 2006

Associated Press--In a move designed to cement their already
formidable presence in the role-playing game market, Hasbro subsidiary Wizards of the Coast is planning to release a fourth edition of its
popular Dungeons & Dragons  game in fall 2006. The move is seen
as somewhat controversial by industry insiders since Wizards of the
Coast (WotC) has just released a revision to the third edition of the
D&D game, commonly referred to as "version 3.5".

"It comes as a bit of surprise to some of our fans, perhaps," said D&D
designer Jonathan Tweet, "but a fourth edition of D&D is the logical
progression of the game&#39;s evolution. To help support our fans who
have bought the 3.5 core books we&#39;re going to be offering a 15%
trade-in deal for the new fourth edition core books. We&#39;re excited
about the work being done for the fourth edition and now that 3.5 is
out it&#39;s time to start planning for the future. We&#39;re going to be
doing things in this new game that no one has ever dared do in an
RPG."

Tweet offered no further comment, but stressed that the fourth
edition--officially titled "Dungeons & Dragons Millenium
Edition"--would be a "substantial rethinking" of the D&D brand.
Hasbro&#39;s stock jumped five points after the exciting announcement.

1. Release date has been set at Fall 2006, though some reports have
(incorrectly) reported Fall 2005.

2. D&D 4th edition will mark the return of the boxed set. The game
wll be sold in both "Starter Set" and "Master Set" editions. The
"Starter Set" will be a boxed set which will include the 4th edition
Player&#39;s Handbook (hardcover), several maps and counters (WotC
insiders are refusing to give details about these, but claim that they
will be an integrated part of gameplay, not just used for combat
resolution), and 10 miniatures. The "Master Set" ("master" referring
to Dungeon Master) includes all of the above plus the Dungeon Master&#39;s
Guide and the Monster Manual. Dice will not be included in either
set.

3. A report in the Los Angeles Times stating that the new game will be
officially called "Dungeons & Dragons Millenium Edition" has proven
unfounded. At this time the game is simply being referred to by WotC
as "D&D 4th Edition".

4. The game will make extensive use of miniatures and counters; unlike
previous editions their use will not be optional. Interestingly, the
game will also use various systems for task resolution in addition to
die rolls. No details on what kind of systems, but some are
speculating a tarot card deck will be included with the Master Set.
This is, however, unfounded at this point in time.

5. New core classes [not prestige classes] include Alchemist, Sage,
and Magician. No word on which, if any, classes from 3/3.5 will be
dropped. When asked how "Magician" differs from Wizard/Sorcerer, WotC
insiders smiled slyly but had no reply.

6. The game will use a 1.5" scale for its combat grid and all
miniatures released for the game will use this new scale.

To say the least, though, WotC uses the 1,5" scale, which happens to be relatively unused by a lot of people, which basically means: "Not only must you use figures, you must also use our own, new, high-quality figures&#33;" <_<

I tend to doubt the legitimacy of the article that you cite. First of all, because a search of the Los Angeles Times archives fails to turn up the article, but also because a review of the performance of Hasbro Stock in October (the alleged publication of the article in the LA Times is October 10th by my reckoning) does not show a five point jump, or even a sudden jump. Over the course of the month there is a rise of about 2 1/2 points, but nothing as dramatic as the article implies.

I used google to search for the article on the internet too, using "Dungeons and Dragons Millenium Edition" and the headline as keywords, but was able come up with three extant reference only. All of them come from message boards, one of them only had the headline repeated several times. The other two were identical to the post you quoted, including the 6 points that were included outside of the article.

I found this lack of internet propagation telling, you&#39;d think it would appear elsewhere, especially given that the article was supposedly released by the AP (without a dateline I may add). That means that it should have been picked up by multiple newspapers at least.

Furthermore, (If I may get on my own soapbox) even if Wizards or Hasbro intends to release a new edition by 2006, they would be idiots to announce it so early, because that would mean that all of their releases up until then would be "lame duck" games, their sales would be deppressed especially as the 4E date neared, because people probably wouldn&#39;t want to spend money on something that would be completely replaced so soon afterwards.

Furthermore a search of the LATimes archives comes up empty on any so called Press Release. I would have to say that while it is probably true that they are developing 4th edition. They have not officially announced it as of yet. So to put the rumors to bed I have emailed Wizards of the Coast and asked them straight up. When I get a reply I will post it here.

Lord Eldred
High Councilor of the
United Provinces of Cerilia
&quot;May Haelyn bring justice to your realm&quot;